The Story Behind
by TheAwesomeSeal
Summary: Fate has a strange way of manipulating reality and turning it into a dramatic story filled with plot twists. What if Cato and Clove had seen Katniss before the 74th Hunger Games? What if Clove had made an important promise that she was going to help start a rebellion? Clato, Everlark, Gadge,
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer : I do not own The Hunger Games**

"And our volunteers for this year are…." Everyone's eyes were glued to Enobaria as her hand moved around the bowl, before snatching two pieces of paper and reading out the names written on them. "Cato Smith and Sapphire Johnson."

Groans could be heard from all over the room as everyone who weren't chosen shot death glares at the two teenagers who were grinning proudly at the back. Cato had his arm around his girlfriend, who was smiling proudly at him. "Now," Enobaria said loudly, earning everyone's attention back to her. "I have a project for our two tributes. You will visit the other districts. Each of you will get two people from each district and take them here, where you will use them to practice different methods of… giving the Capitol a show." They nodded and gestured for Enobaria to continue. "I will choose a partner for you before you go next week. You have 6 months to find people who you think are strong enough to put of a fight before you execute them. Sapphire, you will be going with Mark Wallace and Cato will-" "I'll be going with Clove." Enobaria raised an eyebrow at him. "Very well, Cato. I trust that you know what you're doing. Now, everyone go back to training!"

"Hey, Smith! Or should I say _Black_Smith?" Cato gritted his teeth as they continued to jeer at him. "Heard you're taking your midget out for a district tour!" He could hear them laughing. Before he knew what happened, he was pinning the bastard against the wall. "If you say _anything_ about Clove, I will make sure your balls will make all the girls you try to do run away in fear." "You mean, make me look like you. Everyone knows that the only girl you've succeeded in getting is that midget." An echo could be heard around the room. Everyone turned and saw Silver Stone hunched against the wall with an expression that suggests pain only a guy has ever been associated with and Cato stomping out of the room.

* * *

"You know your dad is going to beat you again once he knows you've embarrassed his family name again right?" Cato just grinned. "Not when he finds out who's going to volunteer for the Games this year." "Oh yeah, about that. I'm proud of you." "Do I get a prize for that?" Clove grimaced at him. "It wasn't really _your _doing. And besides, I give you prizes every night, don't I?" Cato grinned before pinning her against the bed they were sitting on, expressing his excitement for everything non-verbally. He was going around the no-good districts to find people to have fun with, and then he was going into the Games. When he returned as a victor, he was going to live away from his abusive father and nobody would dare to comment on his relationship with Clove anymore. He would prove that love had not weakened him, like everybody at the center seemed to think.

* * *

The week went by quickly and it was time for the four teenagers to go and visit the districts. At the train station, Sapphire and Cato were discussing ways of killing people with all the 1021 weapons there were in the training center. "I can carve patterns into the bodies of those filthy scum I find in the crappy districts before I slit their throat," Sapphire was bragging. Cato scoffed. "I have 21 ways of piercing a person's heart through their back, stomach and even through their limbs." Clove and Mark were sitting next to them, listening to the two share their tips and experience, sighing every now and then. "No, Cato, you did NOT pin the fly against the wall with your knife-throwing skills, I did." "Shut up, Clover." Sometimes they found themselves having laughing fits together.

* * *

The train arrived and they went on it. Inside, a Capitol attendant was waiting for them. "We will be here for 6 hours before we reach District 3. After that, we will go to the districts after that one before we go to District 1. Meanwhile, you are free to do what you want. You will be having your meals in the Dining Room, which is in the back car. Your bedrooms will be in the next car. Each bedroom will fit two people. You can choose to either sleep alone or with a partner. Have a nice ride." He then walked out of the car. "Okay," Mark said awkwardly, "What should we do now?" "I think we should go clean ourselves up and meet in the dining room for dinner." Clove said. "Sure," Sapphire nodded, "Meet you guys here at six."

Clove and Cato decided to share a room, while Sapphire and Mark took separate rooms at the end of the car. In their room, Cato took his shirt off and lounged on the bed. Clove frowned. "Go take a shower." "Come with me," Cato grinned, "you look tense." She rolled her eyes but complied. "Me looking tense isn't really a good excuse of wanting me to get inside the shower with you." "It worked, didn't it?" "Only because I love you and don't want you to feel the pain of getting rejected." In the shower, Cato unexpectedly massaged Clove's back, rubbing the sore spots and pressing on the knots on her back. Clove smiled. "Not like you to be helpful. I hope you're not trying to get into my pants again." Cato rolled his eyes. "You underestimate me, woman. I have no such plans." Clove grinned and started rubbing against his groin, enjoying the surprised look on his face. "Really, now?" "Dammit." Cato groaned. They started kissing, with the cool sensation of the water droplets landing on their bodies. After a while, Cato got more passionate and pinned her on the floor. Clove flipped him so that she was the one on top this time. "You really are strong," Cato said between kisses and groans, smiling cheekily. "despite your size." Clove just rolled her eyes and got up. "Come on, we have to go eat dinner. And shut up about my size unless you want a knife in your eye when you wake up in the morning." "Killjoy."

* * *

Dinner was fun. Cato, Clove, Sapphire and Mark had fun joking around the table. There was a feast of mushroom soup, Caesar salad, roast chicken, mango pudding and a chocolate fountain where they dipped marshmallows and fruit.

Time went by quickly and before they knew it, they were in District 3. They could see a lot of technology factories. One had "Lighting" written on it with rusted steel letters. There were similar buildings with different titles. "Batteries" "Televisions" "Electric Gadgets" Cato didn't get why they even bothered making televisions and gadgets. Surely the people in District 3 were too poor to afford any luxuries like that. "Well," Sapphire finally said, "guess we should start finding victims now. Should we split up?" "Guess so. I'll go with Clove." Cato said.

* * *

"So where should we start looking?" Clove asked. "I think we should go to the place where we will find the strongest and smartest people." Cato answered. "Maybe the labs? They have pretty smart people in there. God knows you need to start training your brain to work if you wanna win the games." Clove teased. "Hush, Clover."

In the labs, they selected a smart-looking man who was working on a blue and red chemical, his face expressing his awe as he saw them mix and turn green. Cato grabbed the man and covered his mouth when his mouth opened to scream.

Two days later, they were back on the train. Cato and Clove had taken a 12-year-old child besides the scientist from District 3. Clove had chosen him, to make sure Cato won't be submerged in guilt if he had to kill a child in the Games. "Seriously, Clover?" Cato had joked. "You're worried about my conscience? Everyone knows you're the compassionate one." Clove caught his arm and twisted it behind his back. Cato winced. "Say it again." "You're the coldest and most ruthless person I have ever met." Clove smiled. "That's better. You know I plan on volunteering next year. Don't need your compassionate comments about me to change Enobaria's mind."

In District 4, they had found a muscled fisherman and his 17-year-old son. In District 5, a fiery brunette and a beautiful blonde girl. "You have to try everything to really be prepared. Can't have you falling in love with your enemy now, can we?" Cato rolled his eyes. "Getting jealous, Clove?" It continued like that until they reached District 12. Clove and Cato had been wandering around the roads, commenting once in a while about how dirty the district is. When they passed the fence guarding the district from the woods, Cato spotted the silhouette of a man far in the woods. "Hey, let's go into the woods. I think I saw a man in there." Clove was skeptical. "Cato, that's against the law." "Technically, we ARE helping by catching whoever broke the law and taking him. Besides, he must be strong to be able to go so far into the woods without getting mauled by a wild beast. Someone we can take with us back to the training center." Clove was still hesitating. "Cato, are you sure?" Truth to be told, he wasn't sure. But they've searched everywhere and all the people in that foul district were too skinny and weak to be of any fight. This man who Cato thought he saw might be the only man who was strong enough for them to make Enobaria proud. "Yes, I'm sure."

So they went under a gap in the bottom of the fence and into the woods. After a few hours of searching, they found nothing. Clove was about to give up and tell Cato that he was only imagining it when they saw it. A shadow rushing past. It was definitely smaller than the man Cato saw, but it was human nonetheless. Clove and Cato grew excited and ran in the direction the shadow's owner had run of to. Then they saw them. A man and a girl. The man looked about eighteen and the girl looked sixteen but besides that, the similarities between them were clear. The both had the same grey eyes, straight black hair and olive skin. The man was tall and strong-looking, while the girl was slight, her body evidently showing the hunger that Clove and Cato had been seeing in everyone there. The expressions on the man and girl ranged from shock, horror and confusion. Who were these people? They looked too well-fed to be living in District 12, and their faces were so unfamiliar, with no seam or town look. "Who are you?" The man shouted at them. "What are you doing here?" "Gale," the girl was worriedly looking around. "keep your voice down, you might attract unwanted attention." "We _already _have unwanted attention, Katniss." The man who was apparently named Gale said cynically. "….You're still scaring off game."

Cato and Clove were just watching the pair bicker about. Suddenly Clove burst out, "Are you both siblings?" "No" Katniss and Gale said at the same time. "Ugh, that's what every stranger asks." Suddenly Katniss's head snaps up and she looks at the strangers, as if just realizing the situation. "Who are you?" Gale just rolled his eyes. Suddenly Cato grabbed Gale's arms and twisted them behind his back. Clove did the same with Katniss, and they pulled them towards the fence, ignoring the pair struggling forcefully. They didn't scream, though, since they knew it wouldn't do any good. Even if someone did come and help them from Cato and Clove, they'd still get caught hunting outside the fence.

"Please," Katniss was begging in tears. "I have a little sister who depends on me for food. My dad's dead and my mom can't feed herself either. Gale has two little brothers and a sister. You can't take us away from them like that." All Cato did was pull at their arms harder. "What makes you think guilt-tripping works on us?" Clove, however was falling into a flashback.

"_Clove, do you mind giving your sister a bath?" Clove, who was boredly flipping through tv channels in the living room immediately jumped up from the couch, glad to be able to do something, even though it was giving a bath to her bratty sister. She walked into her sister's room. "Come on, Madeline. Mom says you need a bath." The eight-year-old was sitting on her bed with her arms folded and a pout on her face. "I'm not dirty, Clover. I don't need a bath." Clove sighed. It was always the same excuse. "I don't care Mads. You need a bath." "You don't see any black dirt on me, do you?" Madeline was still trying to get out of the bath. After a few hours, Madeline was still listing out all the excuses she could think of, which were getting less and less sense. "If I take a bath, President Snow will force everyone to join into the Hunger Games and kill them, just like he does every year. But this time EVERYONE'S going in. And me and my friends won't be there to rebel and stop him just like we've been planning last week." Clove knew that was just a stupid eight-year-old comment and ignored it. Minutes later, however, peacekeepers stormed into her house and into the bathroom. _

_Clove's mother was screaming. "What are you doing in my house? My daughters and I have done nothing wrong!" "Our security cameras have caught your youngest daughter talking about planning a rebellion. President Snow has ordered us to execute anyone who talks about rebelling." "SHE'S JUST A CHILD!" It was too late, however, since Madeline was on the floor with blood pooling around her, a knife jutting out of her abdomen. The Peacekeepers left and Clove ran towards her sister and crouched beside her, pressing a wet cloth tightly to the wound. "Oh my god, don't worry, Mads. You'll be fine." "Promise me you'll help me friends start the rebellion, Clover." Clove barely heard Madeline's small voice, so she wasn't worried about any cameras catching that comment. She looked at her sister with wide eyes as her hand fell to the floor and her eyes rolled back on her head. "I promise" _

Clove seldom remembered that memory, since it reminded her of part of her family being murdered because of an innocent comment. It also bothered her since she has never broke her word to someone, and a promise to her dead sister seems all the more important a promise to her. She immediately let Katniss's hands go as Cato stared at her with understanding. He'd been there when she cried into him about Madeline's death. He let Gale's hands go too and barked at them, "You're lucky. Go away and never let us see you again." Katniss and Gale briefly expressed their gratitude before they were running back towards the neighborhood. Cato glanced down at his girlfriend and saw his girlfriend's eyes glinting with unfalling tears. "I just want to forget everything sometimes, Cato. A break would be nice once in a while." He hugged her to his chest. "Hey, it's okay. I'm here."

* * *

They ended up choosing a man and a woman who were already on the brink of death due to starvation.

**Hey guys, thanks so much for reading, it's my first story so please don't judge :D Please review! **

**P.S. I'm so sorry for the huge paragraphs, just in case it bothered anyone. It's better in the next chapters.**

**Cheers,  
TheAwesomeSeal**


	2. Familiar

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games**

*Katniss's POV*

"We could do it, you know," Gale said quietly. "What?" Katniss asked. "Leave the district. Run off. Live in the woods. You and I, we could make it." He says.

I didn't know what to say. He must be delusional again, just like he sometimes is before the reapings. "If we didn't have so many kids." He says quickly. They're not our kids, of course. Gale and I were just friends. But they might as well be. Prim, Rory, Vick and Posy. They can't live without us.

"I'm never having kids." I said.

"I might, if I didn't live here." Gale seemed deep in thought.

"But you do," I said, annoyed. "Time to accept reality, Gale. Reapings are going to start in a while."

"Forget it," he snaps back.

*End of Katniss's POV*

* * *

"I don't know what to do, Clove," Sapphire was saying to her friend, "my mom's sick. She's dying and there's nobody home to take care of her except for me. I can't join the Games and leave her. What if I die in there? She'll die without anyone to take care of her!"

Clove stroked her hair, trying to console her hysterical friend. "You don't have to volunteer, you know. I'm sure Enobaria will understand. And I'll bet the person whose name gets chosen will be ecstatic about going into the Games."

Sapphire smiled. "Thanks, Clove." "Hey, don't worry. It doesn't matter who goes into the Games. Cato will be the one coming home."

* * *

Everyone held their breath when Shimmer Flairy's hand picked up a piece of paper from the men's bowl. "Mason Keynes!" "I VOLUNTEER!" Cato had lunged forward until he was below the podium.

"I see we have a volunteer!" Shimmer's nasally voice showed that she wasn't really surprised. After all, District 2 always had a volunteer for the Games. "What's your name?"

"Cato Smith" He said proudly. "And now for the ladies!"

Shimmer's sharp, painted nails caught one piece of paper and she picked it up.

"Sapphire Johnson!" Clove's head whipped up as her eyes scanned the crowd for Sapphire's face. Sapphire was pale and tears were flowing down her cheeks like a waterfall.

Clove thought about Mrs. Johnson, lying down in her bedroom, weak and frail and coughing out blood into her pillow. She ran through the crowd, the people making way for her to avoid being ran into. "I volunteer!"

Cato tried to maintain his cocky smirk, but his face betrayed his shock.

"We have another volunteer! What's your name sweetie?" "Clove Summers." She mumbled. "Now we have our tributes! Cato Smith and Clove Summers! Now shake hands, you two."

* * *

The door open and Sapphire burst into the room Clove was in.

"I'm so sorry, Clove." She was crying. "I didn't know my name was going to be called out." Clove made her friend sit and hugged her until her sobs died down. "You didn't have to volunteer for me." She whispered.

In her mind, Clove reversed the situations. If her mom was the one dying with nobody to tend to her…

"You would have done the same for me." Sapphire smiled. "You're right. Good luck Clove, I don't really know if I should tell you that I hope you win, with Cato and all.."

Clove nodded. "Thanks."

* * *

The mayor's daughter, Madge, opened the door.

Today her drab school outfit had been changed into a pretty white dress. "Pretty dress." Gale remarked dryly.

Madge's expression turned bewildered as she looked at Gale and tried to decide if he was being sarcastic. He probably was. "Well, if I end up going to the Capitol, I want to look nice, don't I?"

Now Gale looks confused. She was probably just messing with him. "You won't be going to the Capitol," Gale says coolly, "What can you have? Five entries? I had six when I was just twelve years old." "That's not her fault." Katniss tried to defend her. "No," Gale answered, "it's no one's fault. Just the way it is."

Madge's face became expressionless and she turned her gaze to Katniss and took the strawberries from her. She dropped a few coins into Katniss's palm and said, "Good luck, Katniss." "You too." Katniss said, _though she doesn't need it,_ she thought.

* * *

Next, Clove's parents came inside. Her mom immediately came and hugged her. "I'm so proud of you, sweetheart."

Clove forced a smile on her face. Her dad clapped her on her shoulder. "Good luck, Clove. I hope you win."

"Thanks, Dad." Her parents haven't been as close to her as they were before since Madeline died. Clove suspected they blamed her.

She wasn't angry at them. She blamed herself too.

* * *

*Katniss's POV*

I ran my hands through the plush purple velvet. It was one of the richest stuff I've ever touched, and I can't help running my hands through it. It helped calm my nerves, somehow. And I know that I needed to calm my nerves for mom and Prim.

I tried to control my shaking fingers by assuring myself that volunteering for Prim was the right thing to a few minutes of waiting, they ran into the room.

I hugged Prim and told her all about what to do when I was gone.

And then I went to my mom. "You can't leave again." I say. She looks down. "I know. I won't. I couldn't help what-" "Well, you have to help it this time. You can't clock out and leave Prim on her own. I won't be there to keep you both alive anymore, you're all she has. Do you understand?" I was shouting now. My mom was angry now. "I was ill. I could've treated myself if I'd had the medicine I have now." "Then take it. And take care of her!"

"It'll be alright, Katniss. But you have to take care, too. You're so fast and brave. Maybe you can win." I can't win. Prim must know that. But I can't show that I'm giving up. "Maybe," I said.

Next, the baker comes in. I'm sure he just said goodbye to his son. He sits awkwardly on one of the chairs. He gives me a white paper package. I open it and see cookies inside. Cookies that I can never afford.

After a while, he clears his throat and says, "I'll keep an eye on the little girl. Make sure she's eating." I felt my heart lighten in relief. "Thank you." I said.

Then Madge comes in. she isn't weeping, like most of the girls when they come to say goodbye. Instead she has an urgency to her expression. She holds out something in her hand to me. On it was a circular gold pin. The one she was wearing on her white dress. "They let you wear one thing to from your district in the arena. Something to remind you of home. Will you wear this?" "Your pin?" I asked. I haven't even thought of wearing a token. "Here," she says, fastening the pin on my dress, "I'll put it on your dress, alright? Promise you'll wear it, Katniss? Promise?" "I promise." I say. She nods and smiles and turns towards the door. "Hey, Madge?" She turns. "Take care of Gale, all right?" She looks surprised but nods. "Sure."

Finally Gale comes in and I rush into his arms. "Listen," he says seriously, "You can do this. You can win." I shook my head. "I can't win, Gale. You know that." "You can. You've had practice. You can kill." "Not people, Gale. They're armed. They think." "How different can it be, really?" He smiles bitterly. The thing that bothers me is that he's right. If I can imagine that they're animals, I can kill humans just as easily. Then the peacekeepers come in and take Gale away. "Don't let them starve!" I shouted at him. "I won't!" I heard his voice before the peacekeepers successfully pushed him out.

* * *

Cato was shouting in the train car. "What the hell were you thinking, Clove? You know what happens, one of us isn't going to come out!"

"Sapphire's mom is _dying_, Cato."

"Well, you could've let someone else volunteer!" Cato was visibly shaking in anger.

"She only told _me _that she didn't want to go into the Games. Nobody would have volunteered since they thought that Sapphire was the one who was supposed to volunteer anyway. Imagine if your mom was the one who was seriously sick. Imagine if your mom is dying."

Clove was crying now and Cato saw it. He immediately regretted exploding on her and pulled her into his chest.

"I just feel like to forget everything." "Hey, Clover, it's okay, I'm here." That was their habit whenever Clove or Cato were on the edge of having a mental breakdown.

"I understand." He then grinned, trying to lighten the mood. "I told you that you were always the one who got into trouble because of compassion."

Clove snorted, despite her tears. "You're human too, you also care about people." "You're the only one I care about, love."

* * *

After dinner, they watched the recap of the reapings.

From District 1, a beautiful blonde had volunteered. Clove had glanced at Cato in slight jealousy, trying to see his reaction but Cato wasn't paying attention to the television. He was staring at Clove. She rolled her eyes at him, blushing, trying to concentrate on the tributes and ignore his eyes burning holes into her head. It went on that way until District 12's turn. When they heard someone volunteer, they had glanced up at the television in interest. No one has ever volunteered in District 12.

Suddenly Clove's eyes grew wide as she stared at the television. "Cato," he glanced down at his lover, "That District 12 girl looks familiar."

**Hi again, people! Thank you so much (again) for reading :) Please review!**

**Stay kawaii,  
TheAwesomeSeal**


	3. The Opening Ceremony

**Disclaimer: The closest I've come to owning THG is dreaming about it :'(**

Cato looked up, and his expression became similar to the one Clove was wearing. "She does indeed."

"She was the one who we almost took back to Enobaria. The one with the little sister."

Cato looked at her. "What are you planning, Clove?"

She looked up at him. "We have to help her. She mentioned that her sister can't live without her. And her boyfriend who we found there with her will probably not be able to live without her too."

"Are you crazy? What about us? What will happen to _us_?"

She smiled sadly at him. "If one of us wins, the other one won't. And we don't have anything much to live for beside each other anyways."

Still, Cato couldn't bear the thought of Clove not being in this world. She _had _to stay alive. When she asked him "Promise?" though, he couldn't help but give her what she wants.

"Promise."

* * *

In the morning, Clove woke up in Cato's arms.

She heard Shimmer's shrill voice outside the door. "Clove! Wake up and come eat breakfast!"

Clove groaned. It will be impossible to sleep now. She shook Cato to wake him up. "Cato! We have to go eat breakfast now!"

His eyes opened sleepily. He looked confused. "We helped Hugo remember town? What? Who's Hugo?"

His bewildered tone and expression had Clove giggling. Cato rolled his eyes and carried her outside.

Shimmer was in front on Cato's room, which was next to Clove's. When she saw them both come out of Clove's room, she looked shocked. "My, my, what have we got here? Why were you two sleeping in Clove's room?"

They both looked uncomfortable and Cato awkwardly walked into the dining room without answering.

* * *

In the breakfast room, they met Brutus and Enobaria who were going to be mentoring them. When Enobaria spotted them, she raised her eyebrows at them.

"Shimmer told me she found you two spending the night together in Clove's room. Want to explain?"

Cato scowled at her. "Listen, Enobaria. You know that Clove and I are-"

"It doesn't matter what Clove and you are. You two are about to go into the arena and you can't afford to show any weakness."

"She's right," Brutus chimed in, "Both of you need allies if you want to win. District 1 and 4 won't want to ally with you once they find out that you two are attached to each other like that."

"We don't need allies," Clove argued, "Cato and I can survive just fine on our own."

"You don't want to accept it, but you _do_ need allies," Enobaria's voice was as cold as ice, "Without them, you won't get all the supplies in the Cornucopia. Without them, you can't fight off all your opponents. It doesn't matter how much training you've taken. Without them, _you won't be able to survive for a day in there_."

"I don't care," Cato said, "I'd rather die early than have to spend our last days together pretending we're not in love with each other."

Brutus's eyes flashed. "Don't you two get it?" His normally composed face now looked angrier than anything they've ever seen before. "This isn't about you two and your cute little love story. This isn't even about making your district proud!"

Clove and Cato looked surprised. "Then what-" Clove asked but was cut off by Brutus's angry voice. "_It is about President Snow._ He wants the career districts to win the Games every year. He doesn't want the tributes small and unimportant districts to win. He wants to show and imply that everything controlled by the Capitol, such as the careers, are the ones that win. Everything you know about Panem is an act. It is a show directed by President Snow to avoid a rebellion. And right now he's trying harder than ever."

"Why?" Clove asked.

Enobaria answered, "You know about that girl from District 12 who volunteered for her sister?" They nodded. _We not only know about it, _Cato thought sarcastically, _we've made a plan to help that girl and make sure she wins and goes home to her sister._

"Now," Enobaria's tone turned cheery, "time for you to meet you stylists." Cato and Clove both groaned. The stylists were always the most flamboyant and colorful of all the Capitol people.

Two people walked into the room. Wait, cross out the people.

They were peacocks. Colorful, chattering peacocks. One had green hair, rainbow skin and was wearing feathers, feathers everywhere.

By the curves that were barely visible, though, Cato could safely assume that she was a woman.

The other one was wearing a lime green, sparkly jumpsuit, a huge pink fedora hat and had short, neon blue hair and light orange skin. Cato and Clove both had the urge to cover their eyes.

_Oh my Panem, _they thought at the same time, _those can't be our stylists, can they?_

* * *

"Hi," the stylist with the orange skin said. His silly Capitol accent had just a hint of masculinity to it, so he was probably a couldn't be sure, though.

"My name is Angus." _Oh, _Clove thought, _a male enough name._ "This is Olivianne," Angus pointed at the woman next to him. "We're going to be your stylists! Clove, you'll be going with Olivianne and Cato," his eyes roamed up and down Cato's body which had him uncomfortable and weirded out, "you're coming with me, handsome." _Ew, _Cato thought.

* * *

In the styling room, Cato was waxed and plucked and washed until his body felt as raw and vulnerable as a sheep that has just been shaved. With a chainsaw.

His prep team, Xaverius, Augustus and Lim, were circling him and fixing all the imperfections that have been left over.

Xaverius had pink dreadlocks and skin implanted with glitter. Augustus had feathers woven into his purple hair and his skin had been sprayed with an orange tan which reminded Cato of the time his dad puked on the floor after he came home drunk late at night.

Lim was by far the plainest one Cato has seen so far in the Capitol. He had black hair and Asian features. The only alteration which classified him as Capitol was the tattoo of a dragon on his right forearm. He was also the only person Cato could have a sane conversation with.

"I like your tattoo," Cato said to Lim when his hair was being done by the Asian.

"Thanks," Lim answered, "my wife made me get it. It was her last wish before she passed away, that I carry on our family tradition and get a dragon tattoo."

"Oh." Cato was surprised. That was the first time he heard about a Capitolite losing someone they loved. They had always seemed so shallow, uncaring of anything else besides themselves. It was mostly true, Cato thought as he watched the other two of his prep team flounce around, chatting about someone named Octavia's birthday party which is going to be held next week.

The theme of the party is feathers.

* * *

Meanwhile, Clove was fuming. "I _refuse_ to wear this skimpy piece of crap."

She glared at the mirror, wrinkling her nose at the tight piece of golden chest armor and black and gold extremely tight skirt. Olivianne frowned at her, "But you look absolutely beautiful, darling," "I look like a prostitute!" "Um…what is a prostitute?"

_Right, _Clove thought, _the Capitol doesn't have prostitutes, nobody here has the need to give sex for money. _

"Nothing."

"Anyway," Olivianne continued, oblivious to Clove's hostile waves radiating off her, "we agreed on the theme Roman Gladiators because they built everything with stone."

"I wouldn't have agreed if I saw the outfit," Clove retorted, "besides, didn't Roman Gladiators fight all the time? How can anyone fight in this suffocating chest garbage and a skirt where you can't even move?"

Olivianne just rolled her eyes. "Well, we already chose your costume and you can't do anything about it. Clove just grumbled, "Even District 12 will probably have a better costume than us."

Little did she know how right she is.

* * *

Cato stood by the District 2's tribute carriage, looking around for Clove.

When he spotted her, his smile could have lit up the all the Districts.

When she reached his side, he murmured into her ear, "You look hot, baby."

Clove looked at him. He was wearing the same armor she was, and black tights. She snorted. "Nice tights."

Cato swatted her arm. "I don't get why they put us in a costume as tight as this, though," she continued, "how are people supposed to fight?"

Cato nodded, laughing. "How dimmer can these walking rainbows get?"

They turned when they saw Angus rushing towards them. "Time to get on the carriage. Hold on tight and don't fall."

Cato gulped, remembering the time he fell off a moving wagon and had to get stitches. He felt Clove grasp his hand and looked down at her.

"Don't worry," she smirked, "I won't let you fall again."

Cato felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment. After all, it's not everyday that he needed his little girlfriend to hold him upright in a carriage.

Clove seemed to sense this and mockingly scowled at him. "Hey, my size and gender doesn't deem me completely worthless, you know. I'm not a damsel-in-distress who needs her burly knight in shining armor to sweep her up in his arms and ride off into the sunset. Though you _do _fit the description of the knight... besides the tights." she said, looking at Cato leaning against a horse in his golden armor.

Cato rolled his eyes. "Time to get on the carriage."

Clove climbed onto the carriage and offered her hand to Cato.

He took it and heaved himself up the carriage before wobbling slightly.

Clove chuckled. She's always found Cato's fear of heights and falling down slightly endearing. That was proof that even invincible Cato had some chinks in his armor. He was eighteen and couldn't even climb a tree. Clove sometimes offered to teach him, but he always refused, saying that he would never had the need to climb a tree. She always protested, but it was true. Cato's inability to climb has never caused him any problems for his whole eighteen years.

Cato took Clove's hand and held on it so tightly his knuckles turned white.

In the distance, they could see Enobaria and Brutus. They were angrily telling Cato and Clove to let go in each other's hands. Clove saw Enobaria mouth at them, "President Snow is watching."

"Let go of my hand, Cato." Clove said softly.

Cato shot her a confused glance and she subtly pointed her head at President Snow, whose snake-like eyes were watching them. Cato's mouth formed a small "o" in understanding and he let go of her hand.

Suddenly the horses whinnied and the carriage started to move.

Cato and Clove's carriage followed District One's into the city square.

They could hear Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith making comments about the tributes and their costumes.

"Oh, isn't that District One girl just _gorgeous_?"

"Look at District Two's costumes, how creative! And do you see the male tribute of District Two? Hot,hot,hot!"

Clove snorted, and Cato's face was a light shade of green.

Oblivious to the reactions of the grossed-out tribute, Caesar and Claudius continued with the comments.

"Aren't the District Four costumes adorable?"

"District Five girl sure looks sly."

"Aw, look at the girl from District Eleven. So cute, so innocent."

Cato swallowed his anger. The Capitol was corrupting and murdering this _so cute, so innocent_ little girl.

Suddenly, Caesar and Claudius started to shout. "WHAT IS THAT I SEE? THE DISTRICT TWELVE TRIBUTES ARE ON FIRE!" "WOO! DID I MENTION THAT THE TRIBUTES LOOK _HOT_ TODAY!" The crowd was also going wild, throwing flowers at Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark.

Suddenly, the crowd impossibly screamed louder.

Cato and Clove looked back and saw Katniss and Peeta with their hands intertwined.

Caesar and Claudius were screaming so loud, Clove had the urge to cover her ears, but Cato had silently taken her hand to avoid falling off the carriage.

Instead, she looked at the president and saw him stroking his puffy lips with a thoughtful and menacing look on his face.

Before Clove could decipher what that look meant, the carriages jerked to a halt and President Snow's voice echoed across the room.

"Tributes! We welcome you to the 74th annual Hunger Games and may the odds be ever in your favor!" The National Anthem started playing and all the horses started pulling the carriages back to the Tribute buildings.

Cato briefly contemplated about what he could do with a horse as obedient as that. He could make the horse wait in front of people's houses and scare the shit out of them.

He didn't realize that he had started to grin until Clove raised an eyebrow at him and said, "Cato? Are you…okay?" He snapped his head down and his cheeks turned deep crimson. "Uh…yeah, yeah, I'm fine."

* * *

"So… apparently, the hand-holding idea was a good idea after all."

Enobaria scowled at Cato. "They were weak tributes from small districts. Careers can't be caught dead holding hands like that by the President and the Capitol. And I bet you that it will backfire on them soon, anyway." Her tone suggested that she didn't want to continue the conversation, so the dinner table became quiet.

After dinner, Clove was walking towards her room when she felt two huge arms knocking her knees back and carrying her.

She shrieked and saw Cato's face, his eyes silently telling her to keep quiet.

"What are you doing here?" She whisper-shouted.

"I had to see you, didn't I? We only have two days left before the arena." "Yes, Cato. We have _two days_ to get over this. You know we can't go into the arena as lovers." "I don't care." Cato's mouth set in a stubborn line.

Clove still looked worried, but she smirked slightly. "Good, me neither." "You know there are cameras watching us right now," Clove said between kisses. "Why should we care about cameras when we're gonna die in two days?"

That was enough for her. That night, the first night since the reapings, Clove let herself get lost in Cato's arms.

**Thanks for reading :) Reviews are appreciated.**

**Cheers,  
TheAwesomeSeal**


	4. The princess and the coal miner

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I am still writing fanfictions.**

**Author's note : I've decided to switch the focus from Clove and Cato to Gale and Madge to Katniss and Peeta each other chapter. So, this one's mainly focusing on Gadge. Enjoy! ;) **

"Undersee!" Madge looked up, confused. She knew that voice, but the owner of the voice has never acknowledged her, so why would he start? Especially without Katniss there, who was usually the only reason he ever realize she exists. "What do you want, Hawthorne?"

Gale looked breathless, his cheeks flushed, like he'd been chasing Madge for a long time. He glared up at Madge halfheartedly. "I've been chasing after you and shouting your name like a madman."

Madge almost flushed in embarrassment. She'd been deep in thought about Katniss and how she might survive. She tried to cover up her fluster.

"Well, sorry!" She snapped. Gale raised his arms up. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. What's got your knickers in a twist?"

Madge narrowed her eyes. "What do you want, Gale?" Suddenly, Gale's expression turned uneasy.

"Um… Rory's going to watch the opening ceremony with Prim, and mom and the kids aren't going. I was wondering whether you want to come and watch with me? Rory's been nagging me all day long to find someone to watch it."

"Uh, um, sure, Gale." She was confused.

Out of all the people he could have asked, he chose her? Why would he?

Madge wasn't oblivious to her surroundings. She knew that girls swooned and giggled and fixed their hair and clothes whenever Gale walks by them. Gale could have gotten any girl to go with him, they wouldn't even hesitate to say yes.

Instead, he chose the Mayor's daughter who is probably the only girl besides Katniss who isn't lovestruck by him.

It makes enough sense to Madge, actually. He probably wanted to watch the opening ceremony with a girl who wouldn't spend the whole show adjusting her shirt to show more cleavage.

Gale sighed in relief. "So," he said, "meet you in the Justice Building at five?"

Madge nodded. "Okay."

* * *

Gale scanned the crowd, looking for Madge. Finally he spotted her hair and made his way towards her.

She was wearing a slightly dirty brown t-shirt and grey trousers. Not her usual attire. Gale was confused. Why did she choose to wear an un-town girl-y outfit to meet him? Did she not want to be noticed hanging around with a seam boy? Or –was it possible- did she dress like that just to fit in with him and make him look less dirty?  
_No, _he thought, _I'm just imagining it._

Madge felt his eyes boring holes into her back and turned. She saw Gale openly gaping at her outfit. "If you're not coming, I can go alone," she snapped.

Gale snapped out of his wondering and answered her. "Let's go," he said before walking, leaving Madge alone, staring at Gale's back.

Madge knew that he had been wondering about her outfit but was too proud to ask. Was it so unbelievable that she, with her blond hair and blue eyes and fancy dresses, was not as snobbish as people seem to think? Was it impossible that she wanted to look like a normal person, as normal as her features will let her? She sighed and ran to catch up with Gale.

* * *

Both of them found a spot in the middle of the crowd where they could get a decent view of the huge screen in front of the Justice Building.

After a few minutes of waiting, the National Anthem started playing from the screen and Caesar Flickerman's voice echoed off the whole place. "Greetings, audience! Today is the day we've been waiting for! THE OPENING CEREMONY!"

_Really,_ Gale thought dryly, _all they're waiting for is the slaughter._

District One's carriage rolled in, followed by District Two and so on. Madge snickered as she saw the male tribute from District Two look slightly sick when Claudius commented, "Do you see the male tribute from District Two? Hot, hot, hot!"

When Katniss and Peeta came into view, everyone who were watching literally stopped breathing. It was quiet before Caesar started screaming, "WHAT IS THAT I SEE? THE DISTRICT TWELVE TRIBUTES ARE ON FIREEE!"

Everyone started cheering and Madge sneaked a look at Gale. He had a hint of a genuine grin on his normally smirking face.

* * *

After the end of the Opening Ceremony, Gale and Madge stood awkwardly next to each other, watching the people walk away. Madge took a deep breath. "Soo…. Thanks, I guess. I should be home soon." "Wait," Gale called out, "I'll walk you."

Madge raised an eyebrow at him. "Sure, Gale."

They walked side by side in comfortable silence. When they reached her manor, she turned. "Thanks for walking me, I guess." "No problem," he answered her, giving her his typical smirk that always won girls over to the slag heap. All Madge did was raise her eyebrows at him. "Bye." She said before walking inside and closing the door, leaving Gale gaping like a fish out of water, before walking away, growling to himself.

No one has ever resisted his smile, his charisma. All the girls he wanted, he got. No one has ever so blatantly turn him down. _No one. _ Madge was the first. And he'll be damned before he gives up on winning her over.

* * *

**Hey guys, thank you to whoever is still reading this. Sorry if this chapter is shorter than the others, but I'm facing a serious writer's block. I'm not a fan of long author's notes, so guess I'll leave it at this. Please review!**

**TheAwesomeSeal**


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